Seven years of war in Afghanistan and Iraq have brought a major increase in the number of patients seeking help from Veterans Administration clinics.
"In 1998, we saw 7,203 patients. We now have 13,500 patients. That's why we're building a new clinic," said Jill Carley, director of the Adam Benjamin Jr. VA Outpatient Clinic at 9330 Broadway in Crown Point.
The new, 55,000-square-foot VA clinic will be built just west of the present facility and should be opened in 2010. The expansion will provide even more mental health facilities and trained staff to care for veterans, Carley said. "We will be expanding to accommodate the increasing number of veterans we are seeing."
Clinic officials are seeing more mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries in America's newest veterans, Carley said. Although veterans from other wars suffered from these disorders, the conditions weren't readily recognized until recently, she said.
"We know now and are prepared to help these veterans," she said.
Post-traumatic stress disorder is an anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to terrifying events where grave physical injury occurred or was threatened, Carley said. It is triggered by violent personal assault, natural or human-caused disasters, accidents or military combat.
"About 8 million Americans have PTSD and a report in June 2007 by the Department of Defense Mental Health Taskforce said that nearly 50 percent of National Guard members and reservists report incidences of PTSD," Carley said.
These military personnel are experiencing such symptoms as being easily startled, feeling emotionally numb, losing interest in things they once enjoyed, irritability, aggression or violent behavior and flashbacks or repeatedly reliving the event during the day or in nightmares.
Traumatic brain injuries can have very mild to severe symptoms and result from a blow or jolt to the head. Carley said military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan have been through attacks from weapons such rocket-propelled grenades, improvised explosive devices and land mines.
The disruption of normal brain activity that occurs with traumatic brain injury can appear as persistent headaches, ringing in the ears, difficulty remembering or severe intellectual impairment.
In addition, veterans often experience "re-integration issues," Carley said. "It's the process that veterans go through when returning to the U.S. after being deployed. It's very difficult to adjust from military life at war to life in the U.S."
To help veterans make that adjustment, the Adam Benjamin Jr. Outpatient Clinic offers eight structured support groups that provide education and information. Each group is designed around a specific topic, such as "PTSD: Taking Back Your Power," "When Substances Control You" and "Taking Good Care of Yourself."
Currently, the Adam Benjamin Jr. clinic offers outpatient services in X-ray, laboratory, podiatry, women's health, primary care, mental health and diabetes care and education as well as an eye clinic. The facility is part of the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center in Chicago. In-patient referrals are made to that medical center and to the Edward Hines Hospital special needs program near Chicago.
Carley said the clinic serves all veterans who meet eligibility requirements, but these requirements change periodically.
"If you're a veteran, you need to get your name on our rolls. You need to come in to register," she said.
Carley said she sees only increases in the care being offered to America's veterans during the coming years.
"We have more qualified staff than ever before," she said. "This is a new VA."
